Simon Food Favourites: Fried Chicken Wings

06 July 2013

The Milk Bar By Cafe Ish: Cafe, Redfern (3 Jan 2013)

105 Regent Street, Redfern NSW 2016

Shaking up the neighbourhood

When Cafe Ish was in Surry Hills they were famous for their crab omelette so it's good to see they've kept it on the menu after their relocation to Redfern and renaming. A push for sustainable burgers and shakes seems to now be their passion at a price that won't break the bank. You could opt for the Triple bacon cheese burger or include a Korean style topping with kim chi, chilli paste and pickled daikon but I just tried the basic Cheeseburger ($5) which comes with a beef pattie, cheese, pickles, ketchup and grilled onion. The meat is free range pasture fed, the cheese organic free range and the bun house made. It was smallish but deceptively more filling than expected and pretty tasty. The main thing I was after was to try Ais freaking awesome chicken wings ($13) using free range chicken. It had about three wings cut into nine pieces including wing tips. The vinegar and shallot sauce was very tasty but also very messy due to the abundance of sticky sauce so make sure you have plenty of napkins on hand. A finger bowl would have been handy but don't expect one. BYO moist wipes would be my recommendation. Chef and owner Josh Nicholls has been known to freely speak his mind on twitter and in person so tread lightly and don't poke the bear so to speak.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Reasonably priced menu, Free range meat, eggs, cheese and bacon, Arcade games including Pac-Man, Galaga and Donkey Kong, Lolly jars for a sugar hit, Interesting shakes and sundaes on menu

CONS: Not the easiest area to find parking, Chef's bark is as fierce as his twitter feed

MUST TRY: Ais freaking awesome chicken wings with lots of napkins, The crab omelette (signature dish)

VERDICT: A place to rekindle your child memories of burgers, shakes, arcade games and a lolly bag for the road

—

Cheeseburger: beef pattie, cheese, pickles, ketchup, grilled onion ($5) — free range pasture fed meat, organic free range cheese, house made buns, small but more filling than expected

Ais freaking awesome chicken wings: basket of free range crisp fried free range chicken wings with vinegar and shallot sauce ($13) — about 3 wings, 9 pieces including wing tips, tasty, best to share, very messy to eat makes it finger licking good

WORTH TRYING :-)

Chef and owner Josh Nicholls

Table setting

Nice spacious wooden seating and tables at the front

Old school bag of lollies to be had

Arcade games honour board — I was addicted to Galaga as a kid

Sugar fix assured

Retro jukebox

I bit of wayfinding signage would be handy to the toilet although I'm suspecting it might be that folded over piece of paper on the wall?

Toilet kept tidy although has seen better days in terms of its style

I'm suspecting these crates won't be the most comfortable seating for a long stay

Smack bang in the middle of a major intersection

View Larger Map

16 April 2012

The Norfolk on Cleveland: Pub bistro, Redfern (1 Sept 2011, 14 Apr 2012)

305 Cleveland Street, Redfern NSW 2016
http://www.thenorfolk.co

Tempting bar snacks menu

The Norfolk is probably one of those pubs you'd wish to have closer to home with such a tempting bar snacks menu and weekly specials for the budget conscious. The Spiced Norfolk Fries ($7.50) seem to be a reliable side to any drink. I'm sure they're pretty basic fries but it's the spices they add which make it something a bit more special for the taste buds. For those a little more adventurous the Deep-fried pickles with ranch dipping sauce ($7.50) are possibly an acquired taste. Moist on the inside with a crispy batter. I liked the Fried chicken wings ($12.50) and the BBQ'd sweet corn with chipotle mayo ($5.50) had a smokey char flavour and were quite tasty. The Beef soft shell taco ($5.50 each or 4 for $20) was OK but unfortunately the meat wasn't as finely shredded and moist as hoped and toppings were pretty plain flavoured. The Veg soft shell taco ($5.50 each or 4 for $20) wasn't liked with uninteresting and one dimensional flavour. Ribs and chips ($12 thursday night special) was a bargain although quite fatty and I'm not a fan of my chips getting soggy from the sauce.

A return visit for a friend's birthday brings me to the Trophy Room which is reserved just for the party. Being a saturday afternoon there's cocktail jugs for $30 which included a bar snack. The Endless English Summer ($30 jug) was quite refreshing but the alcohol was quite subtle for my taste considering there wasn't really much of a non-alcoholic mixer on the ingredients. The Bloody Mary menu took my interest to try the Bloody Asian ($15) served in a quirky tomato can with noticeable wasabi in the mix. I think I'll stick to the original Bloody Norf next time or a good Hendrick's Gin & Tonic ($10 each) which always hits the spot for me as a reliable thirst quencher. I hope to return again to eat my way through the bar snacks menu and try a few more of their cocktails.

Other visits to The Norfolk:
• 14 Apr 2012 / 1 Sept 2011 - Bar snacks, Tacos, Ribs, Jugs of cocktails, Bloody Asian

• 18 Mar 2011 - Tacos, Schnitzel, Fries, Chicken Caesar

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Reasonably priced meals and weekly specials, Interesting menu and décor, Garden courtyard at rear, Trophy Room cosy for a private function

CONS: Can get very crowded and loud, Bloody Mary menu may possibly offend

MUST TRY: Deep-fried pickles at least once, Spiced Norfolk Fries, Fried chicken wings, Other bar snacks next time

—

Visited 1 Sept 2011

Lemon, Lime & Bitters — served in wrong glass (left) and correct glass (right), consistency from new bar staff required

Spiced Norfolk Fries ($7.50)

WORTH TRYING :-)

Potato skins with bacon, cheddar, ranch, scallions ($9) — tasty

Deep-fried pickles with ranch dipping sauce ($7.50) — moist on the inside, quite tasty, crispy batter, something a bit different

WORTH TRYING :-)

Fried chicken wings with hot sauce and red eye mayo ($12.50)

WORTH TRYING :-)

BBQ'd sweet corn with chipotle mayo, queso cheese and lime ($5.50) — smokey char flavour, quite tasty

Hot Toddy ($8) — wasn't particularly liked

Beef soft shell taco: Beef brisket, queso fresco, scallions & lime, salsa mojo ($5.50 each or 4 for $20) — was OK but meat not as finely shredded and moist as hoped, toppings were a bit one dimensional

Veg soft shell taco: Seasonal mushrooms, braised red cabbage, almond pico de gallo, pickled cucumber ($5.50 each or 4 for $20) — more like a vege wrap, flavours uninteresting and unfortunately one dimensional for me, very disappointing

Ribs and chips ($12 thursday night special) — quite substantial although ribs quite fatty, chips soaked in sauce on bottom, needed more char smokiness

7 hour lamb sandwich: Slow cooked lamb, caramelised onion jam, alfalfa magic, greens, sourdough bread ($17) — tender and tasty flavours

Hot sauce and pepper sauce table condiments for those who like it spicy

Bar snacks menu

What's On menu

Soft shell taco menu

Decor and seating

Visited 14 April 2012

Endless English Summer: Gin, St Germain, Passion Fruit Pulp, Cucumber, Topped with Processo ($30 jug, includes bar snack Sat 3-6 pm) — Quite refreshing but alcohol quite subtle for my taste

Hendrick's Gin & Tonic ($10 each)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Bloody Asian: Vodka, Wasabi Reduction, Lime Juice, Mary Mix, Tomato Juice, Cucumber, Sesame, Ginger ($15) — very strong on the wasabi, might stick to the normal version